Grow up

Rodney

The poltergeist-like feeling encumbered him as he squeezed the knob, with his body slowly feeling as if it were going numb "I did this too myself."

Twisting it and slowly creaking it open, to the old sweet lavender smell he missed but despised so much at the same time, with the old oak wood floors and bright white walls, which bore many good yet at the same time excruciating memories within them, accompanied with the thumping of footsteps of a  familiar older lady with her arms crossed and piercing eyes approaching the door  "Thank you, officers, I'm so sorry"

"No problem ma'am, could we just speak to the both of you separately?"

She nodded her head with her fingers caressing her chin steadily before walking one of them in, while the other sat with the kid.

"So what's the deal, why'd you run away?" he said with his arms on his hips.

Being met with a blank expression "Do I have to tell you?"

Clinching his hands together and putting his hair back in place "No you don't have to, but it'd certainly make things a lot easier" He said with a classy cocky smirk...

A pale squeamish kid, coming of age who bore a crooked posture, he had a plastered-like expression which if anyone paid enough attention, could tell changed day to day and wasn't fully molded.

 A boy waved in the distance on the worn road, accompanied by two other figures "Hey, Rodney you want to go wide with us?" 

"Jaice? I haven't seen you in god knows how long, sure, let me get my bike out of the shed real quick" running off to his backyard, soon returning with his old bicycle, which still bore the dent from the last time they road around the almost ghost-like town. The most you'd ever see is an old man mowing his worn-down lawn or if you got lucky, somebody getting pulled over.

Placing himself on the rattled seat which had seen better days, and began to peddle, soon followed. 

"So where are we going?" he said out loud

"To the Wake" Yelled Jaice, who was panting, peddling hard as he could.

Crossing familiar houses, and streets which he hadn't seen in a while. With an old man in the distance waving.

Rodney exclaimed, "Hey Jaice you remember him?" 

"Yuh I Member him, Didn he talk a lawt tho?"

"Yea He did, this town never really changes now does it"

"No swame old swame old, doe does yur family still give you issues?" He said continuing to peddle 

"Yea," He said gripping tightly onto his handlebars, with his expression going blank.

Jaice thought to himself that he may have asked the wrong question at the wrong time. But can't go back in time now, can he?

Eventually getting to the Lakefront, met with a navy blue expanse, which Rodney looked at for a brief moment, met with a breeze that brought back a cool sensation and the familiar smell of salt water. Shortly lasted before everyone got on foot and began pulling their bikes aside them on the Lakeside trail. 

After what felt like a while of walking Rodney glimpsed at his phone, with his eyes becoming ones of concern "Hey guys I think it's about time I start heading back before it gets too late, its already 2:34pm and I have to be home before 3:30"

Everyone paused for a moment and looked at him "You want one of us to head back with you?"

Rodney shook his head "No I should be alright, we're not too far away, but thanks for the offer anyways" 

Shortly afterward beginning to walk back "Today was fun" he whispered to himself while following the narrow trail back. But just as he began climbing down the steps that lead to town, he felt a buzzing in his pocket, reaching and pulling out his phone.

"Who could be calling me," He said frozen, staring at his cell, with a sense of deja vu taking him, as his curiosity spiked "Uncle Dolion?" answered.

"Hey Rod, How've you been?" said with a fun exuberant tone

"Oh I've been good, just got back from being with my friends, pretty fun pretty fun. How about you, how's it been at your new place? You spoke a lot about it before the big move" he said pointing his gaze towards the ground. 

"Oh it's been great up here, love it. But Rod I got to tell you something, you promise not to tell anyone I said anything alright?" with a slight pause taking overfilled with the blank dead noise of static.

"Yea you can tell me" looking around to make sure no one was around. 

"I shouldn't be telling you this but I think it's for your best, your stepmom despises you, I just got off the phone the other day with her"

Rodney seemed surprised, with a deep breath, followed by a exhale "What'd she say?"

  "All she did was complain about how you mumble to her, how it irritates her, how it drives her fucking nuts and worst of all she said she hates seeing you every morning," he said in a low expressionless yet playful tone.

And just like that, the plaster broke, revealing an inner cracked and torn maybe even tormented individual, his eyes beginning to water as he lost his internal game of tug of war. Holding back to what to him felt like the pain of a thousand daggers, simultaneously stabbing him in his chest at a constant.

"Rodney? Are you ok? I hope you understand I'm telling you this because I love you and I want you to understand the full deal with your situation. I know times have been tough ever since your dad died"

Rodney, brushed the tears which were pouring down his cheek off "I'm ok, I just don't get it anymore, why can't I be like everyone else? Why'd they have to go, it's not right" 

"Look what I think is best, is if I come and pick you up, me and you can have lots of fun and you'll be able to do whatever you want, be your own man, you are turning seventeen this year after all"

"Wouldn't I get in trouble with the court, I'm legally under my stepmom's custody til 18?" 

"Don't worry about that when you are almost 17 and the law says once you are 17 you can make your own decisions on who you want to stay with"   

Closing his eyes with a single tear slipping down his cheek "Alright then, come and pick me up, if they don't want to see me, fine they can have it their way. I don't care anymore" 

"Alright I'll be on my way, pack some of your clothes up and meet me at the old donut Cafe" he whispered

"Alright, I'ma head back and do that, I'll call you back once I'm done," hanging up, taking another deep breath before hitting the pole beside him with such ferocity that it left a dent "Fuck, my hand, stupid ass shit, come on" with nothing more but a stinging sensation, looking at the already scarred up knuckles.

Continuing his way down the cursed side walk.